Gu Mingyue held the certificate of honor and stood in the center of the podium.

When the factory manager personally presented her with the certificate, he lowered his voice and instructed, "Comrade Gu, we'll sign the subsequent patent transfer contract privately in the office this afternoon, and we'll finalize the details with you later."

She nodded in agreement, her gaze sweeping across the audience, and met Shen Qingqing's eyes.

The other person's face was ashen, his fingers gripping the hem of his clothes were white, and the resentment in his eyes was like ice.

As Shen Qingqing watched Gu Mingyue being surrounded by congratulatory crowds on stage, her fingernails almost dug into her palms.

Shen Qingqing didn't even bother to change out of her work clothes. With a long face, she rushed into her uncle Niu Danian's office, plopped down on the sofa, and started wiping away her tears.

"Uncle, you have to stand up for me! That Gu Mingyue, she won the competition by cheating!"

Niu Danian, the deputy director of the factory, was looking down at the reports when he saw his niece crying pitifully. He frowned and put down his pen.

"Why are you crying? Speak slowly. The competition is over, isn't it? Why are you bringing up Gu Mingyue again?"

"It's her." Shen Qingqing suddenly raised her voice, her eyes red-rimmed.

“When it came to voting, she deliberately got the workers to speak up for her, and she even colluded with those old fogies like Master Zhang to target me. Not only did I have to speak up, but I almost lost face in front of so many people during the competition.”

She deliberately concealed the fact that she had bribed the workers, only focusing on how Gu Mingyue was defended and how she herself had been wronged.

He added at the end, "Gu Mingyue just signed the contract and received the patent fee. Why should she get it? Her design is nowhere near as good as mine. It's obvious the factory manager is biased!"

Niu Danian tapped his fingers on the table, his face darkening.

He knew that Shen Qingqing was spoiled and arrogant, but he also knew that Gu Mingyue's designs had an excellent reputation among the workers, and that the old workers like Master Zhang were very particular and only cared about whether something was practical or not.

But he couldn't just ignore the fact that his niece had been wronged.

After a moment's hesitation, he said to Shen Qingqing, "Alright, stop crying. I understand. Gu Mingyue just signed the contract, so it's not appropriate to touch her now. But don't worry, when the factory has new design projects in the future, your uncle will definitely think of you first. Then she'll know who can truly stand firm."

Upon hearing this, Shen Qingqing's eyes immediately lit up. She wiped away her tears and nodded, "Uncle still loves me the most! I don't believe that Gu Mingyue can always have such a smooth life!"

Not long after Gu Mingyue left, Niu Danian barged into the factory manager's office with the detailed blueprints, slammed them on the table, and spoke with obvious displeasure:

"Factory manager, I think the arrangement of this tooling project is not appropriate. Even if Gu Mingyue, a young girl, wins first place in the design, she can't support the entire factory's tooling reform!"

He paused, then added, "Even if Shen Qingqing didn't perform well this time due to her emotions, it's understandable that she wasn't selected. But what about Master Zhang? He's a veteran model worker in the factory, with over twenty years of experience. He knows the workshop like the back of his hand. Isn't his experience more reliable than that of a young girl?"

We can't put all our eggs in one basket, on the shoulders of the entire factory's workforce and even its future. That's too risky.

The factory manager put down his teacup, picked up the blueprints and flipped through them, then looked up at Niu Danian, his tone calm but with an undeniable firmness.

"Old Wang, I know you're doing this for the good of the factory, but choosing Gu Mingyue isn't about whether she's young or not, it's about whether her designs can truly help the workers."

Look at the details in these drawings: the elastic lining at the back waist, the reflective strips on the cuffs—these are all things workers actually use when they're doing their jobs. Master Zhang himself said this design could save lives; that's the most practical thing.”

He pointed to the workers busy in the workshop outside the window: "The future of our factory does not depend on any one person, but on good designs and good systems that allow workers to work with peace of mind and improve efficiency."

Gu Mingyue's designs have won the workers' approval, which is her source of confidence. As for Master Zhang, his experience can serve as a consultant, helping to ensure quality. Isn't this combination of old and new a better approach?

Niu Danian opened his mouth, wanting to say something more, but was silenced by the factory director's words.

Looking at the dense markings on the blueprints, and recalling Gu Mingyue's composure when submitting the materials, he felt somewhat unconvinced but couldn't find a reason to refute her. In the end, he could only grunt, "I still think it's inappropriate. Let's take another look."

After saying that, he picked up the blueprints and walked out of the office dejectedly.

Luo Haiping followed Gu Mingyue with joyful steps, her mouth never stopping praising her.

"Mingyue, you really made us proud! You even got past Master Zhang's hurdle. The workshop was buzzing with the news this afternoon. Everyone's saying that your design is not only practical, but you're also so efficient. You're much more reliable than Shen Qingqing!"

Gu Mingyue was carrying the prizes from the competition. The results of the competition hadn't been announced yet, but the prizes were already prepared. She was carrying the prizes when she went to the factory manager's office.

After hearing Luo Haiping's words, she smiled and said, "It was mainly because of good luck. I didn't expect to win first place."

The two had just turned into the alley of the residential compound when they were spotted by the aunties sitting on the stone benches at the entrance, picking vegetables.

"Oh, Mingyue's back!" Zhao Xiulan put down her vegetable basket, her eyes lighting up. "I heard you won the factory's design competition? You've really brought honor to our residential compound."

The news spread quickly; as soon as the results were announced, people in the family compound received the news that Gu Mingyue had won first place.

Grandma Wang, who was sewing shoe soles nearby, also came over, took Gu Mingyue's hand and looked her over carefully: "This child is really capable! My daughter-in-law said that even Master Zhang praised the work clothes you designed."

Several neighbors who were passing by also gathered around, praising it all at once.

Someone joked, "Mingyue, when the new work clothes are finished, you have to let us see them first! From now on, all the workers leaving our compound will be wearing clothes designed by our own people. How impressive will that be!"

Surrounded by the crowd, Gu Mingyue listened to these heartfelt words, and the prizes in her hands seemed to become heavy, all of them genuine recognition.

Standing to the side, Luo Haiping looked at Gu Mingyue, who was a little embarrassed by the praise, and added with a smile, "That's not all! The factory manager also said he wants to sign a patent transfer contract with her. In the future, the factory's tooling design might all depend on her!"

A chorus of praise immediately rose from the crowd. Gu Mingyue smiled and nodded, "I just wanted to make everyone more comfortable while working; I didn't think that much about it."

"It was mainly because my leaders and colleagues believed in me that I won first place. I still have a lot to improve on, and I need to learn more in the future."

Hearing Gu Mingyue's modest words, everyone praised her even more.

"What a reliable and good child."

Seeing that more and more people were gathering, Gu Mingyue quickly said, "Aunties, it's getting late. I have to go back and cook. See you later."